Paradise Cove Beach Cafe

I love this place during the week when there are few people and the jazz is good. Add some of their excellent oysters, a walk on the beach, and you have the makings of a perfect evening.

This is also a great breakfast place--the earlier the better. Lots of good food in a perfect setting.

Pros: setting/atmosphere, jazz, oysters

Posted 01/25/05

Don't even think about going here on a holiday weekend. Made that mistake over Labor Day. The service was terrible. It took almost one hour to get a couple of appetizers and sodas in the patio, then another 30 minutes to get our bill and parking validated.

The $25 parking shocked us. It's free for 3 hours if you spend $15 at the cafe, but if you go over even one minute, be prepared to pay. There is NO grace period. With the slow service, it leaves little time to enjoy the beach.

As others have said, the food is only so-so. The fried appetizers were over-fried, dark brown, though there was a considerable amount of food.

I guess this would be a good place to go for a limited time early supper during the week, when you can enjoy the view.

Pros: View

Cons: , Parking, Crowded

Posted 09/25/04

The steak and chicken dishes were great. We had a party of three and all our dishes were great! Atmosphere was great. Recommend making reservations if eating dinner, call ahead if you're running late.

Pros: Seaside dining.

Posted 07/11/04

i am so pleased because the food was exquisite and it was such a plesant experience that i hope my fiance' and i will be going soon. it was the best experience in dinning i have ever had. I have recommened it to all of my friends and will keep on promoting and advertising all of the time... I am so glad that we stepped into such a wonderful atmosphere and restaurant and i will reasure you you will be hearing and seeing us soon.

--thank you
jason & jenny

Pros: great food, cozy atmosphere, great bar service ;)

Cons: , faster seating, not dark enough

Posted 06/28/04

Treatment of the food is much like any other average restaurant all across America: boring but the portions will definitely overfill your belly. Avoid their breakfasts ... terrible eggs and dreadful pancakes. Diners during dinnertime cannot see the magnificent views of the beach and sea, and the food is not the draw. The best dining time is lunch, in order to see the white sand and waves. Watch out for the coconut shrimp. You get one large prawn, sliced in half, coated with coconut, & served on individual skewers to make it look like 2 shrimps on this huge platter of fries, too much fried squid, and few pieces of insipidly fried fish. The crab-stuffed tomato is quite good, much like your Aunt Sally might have made in the 50's.

Pros: good parking, lunch is the best

Cons: , avoid breakfast, don't eat dinner here

Posted 06/14/04

It's a great place to go and relax. You can order your food to go and sit on the beach and enjoy instead of waiting for a table inside. It can get a little loud inside. :) If you want to sit inside I recommend you make a reservation.

Pros: Great Location, Good Drinks, Good Food

Cons: , Crowded on Holidays

Posted 03/08/04

The loacation is the only reason to eat here. The food is served in gargantuan and unappetizing proportions. Screaming children abound. The food is quite similar to other Bob Morris restaurant - heaving salad bars, giant slices of cake, lots of frozen alcoholic bevvies for frazzled parents... etc. The beach is lovely and it can be rather pleasant when it's not too crowded.

Pros: location

Cons: screaming children, crowded

Posted 07/06/03

This palce was great! The food was awsome, the staff was great, and the view was extraordinary. This is truely a ltlle paradise!

Posted 04/28/03

Enjoy the mellow ocean views while you munch on fresh organic goodies from the fabulous salad bar (which includes caprese, mussels, dolmas, and mixed seafood ceviche). Have some fried Calamari in the big Martini glass too. Also, the apple smoked bacon is to die for! Stroll on the beach and check out the tide pools after you eat. What a delight!

Posted 11/04/02

I lived in So. California and this was my favorite place to spend a day at the beach with a special lady. I remember going there when Jim was filming the "Rockford Files" and was told that there were 142 people ahead of me on the lunch waiting list. I still was eating with in one hour.
I met most of the stars of the show and have remembered that lunch for years.
As for food I have great memorys of the desert tray.

Pros: view, food

Posted 10/04/02

Whoa -- who's giving this surprising downer of a place the high ratings? Maybe things have changed since they took away the outside seating (that's right, no more drinks or service outside until further notice, and the inside is pretty bleak), but if this joint is L.A.'s best beach bar, then this town is in worse shape than anyone thought. Maybe I'd recommended it to sociologists and people who like to gorge on free peanuts, but that's about it.

Posted 09/10/02

My wife and I went here with a friend. The drinks werent bad but to wait for an hour to get one was rediculous. You have to buy $15 worth of food to get validated or pay $20 to get out of parking lot. We called to get a little more info and the gentleman that answered the phone was rude and unhelpful. The outside seating you are not allowed to have drinks, not that they tell you that.

Pros: On the beach

Cons: Far from anywere, expensive

Posted 09/01/02

I visited this cafe on the recommendation of the Citysearch website. It took a while to find the place but it was well worth the effort.

The location is wonderful, overlooking the sea.

The food also was very good but maybe the portions were a bit too large.

Pros: Great Views, Good Service

Cons: Large Food Portions

Posted 08/22/02

I love this place and have been coming here for a few years now. It's increadibly beautiful and the drinks are great. Food is so-so. My only major complaint is the outside (beach chairs) waitstaff. They're never friendly, and always seem overworked & irritated. I've waited as much as 1 1/2 hours to place an order! Other than that I HIGHLY recommend this place.

Pros: Beautiful view, Beautiful view

Cons: Crowded, overworked waiters

Posted 08/08/02

My husband and I went to the Cove, Saturday afternoon. We were very pleased with the "strong drinks," as well as with the friendly service. The beach location is excellent! We had lunch in the outdoor sand patio, overlooking the beach. IT WAS GREAT. The food was so so, fried with very little seasoning. We'd definitely go again for the view of the ocean and drinks.

Pros: OCEAN VIEW, STRONG DRINKS, FRIENDLY SERVICE

Cons: FOOD

Posted 07/15/02

great place to kick back and enjoy a summer day. 3-hr parking is free with restaurant validation, which gives ample time to enjoy the private beach. seafood (cold sampler!) is v. fresh, and huge portions. always crowded on weekends, so make reservations.

Pros: food, atmosphere

Cons: distance

Posted 07/11/02

I go to paradise cove at least once a month. It's a great one day getaway.

Posted 06/19/02

A location worthy of any beautiful summer afternoon. This place is an excellent place to enjoy the beach, drink a bloody mary and waste away the day. You can also hike to Point Dume from here, which is a great hike along one of the best beaches in Malibu.

Posted 05/21/02